Spirited Phoenix
by akire26
Summary: It is said that a Phoenix, that elusive mythical being rises through the ashes and is reborn stronger than before. The bird is also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible — a symbol of fire and divinity
1. Spirited Kunoichi?

**Spirited Phoenix**

Foreword: I do not own Naruto, if I did, I wouldn't waste my time writing fanfiction? Now would I? This is my first story, so please be gentle, constructive criticism encouraged. Pairing: Wouldn't you like to know?

Summary: 

It is said that a phoenix, that elusive mythical being rises through the ashes and is reborn stronger than before. The bird is also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible — a symbol of fire and divinity. Meet Haruno Sakura, prund Hidden Leaf Kunoichi.

'_Please, take me with you, I love you……' silence met her sobbing plea._

'_Don't leave me alone!….._'

-End of Dream-

"Ahhhhhhhhh!" exclaimed the newly awoken kunoichi, pretty face drenched in sweat and eyes that carried a daunted look.

Chastising herself for such strong reactions towards such silly dreams, Sakura turned towards her clock and frowned at its offending 3:00 am reading.

"Aughhh! Why can't I have a decent night of sleep?" she asked out loud. Deciding to not wallow in self pity, the young woman languidly took a steaming shower and readied for the day.

7:00 am found her strolling towards the hospital; on her way there she offered tentative smiles and warm greetings. She never did notice the looks of longing and lust some of those greeters showed towards her, the seemingly ignorant kunoichi was too wrapped up in her own little mind to notice.

"Sakura-channnn!!!!"

"Oh this early in the morning?" she wondered, "Good morning Naruto."

"Sakura, I just came to remind you that today we have practice at 5:30, o.k., so you can't say that you forgot" said the loud blond.

Sakura looked at him straight in the eye and noticed his almost anxious expression, she knew she had put it there, by failing to show up to their practices twice already, but she couldn't help it, the patients weren't going to cure themselves. Moving closer to him, she gave him a warm hug.

The future Hokage was astounded, as far as he knew, Sakura wasn't even human in the morning, let alone affectionate. He relished the sentiment, however, and hugged her back.

They stood there amicably still until the waking world interrupted their little world.

"I'm sorry, I promise I'll be there," she quietly responded.

As she turned to walk away, he stopped her by holding onto her wrist.

"Thank you," was all he said and she responded by endowing him with a radiant smile.

A smile that she kept for the rest of the day, even after putting up with shishou's sneaky methods of skipping actual work and more intoxicating liquids. Even after waiting with Naruto for the belatedly-prone exsensei and fellow jounin for two hours, and going home with enough bruises to be properly labeled a darker skin tone.

The smile only faltered as she stood in front of her dark and uninviting house, looking at her humble abode only helped her further steel in her courage and keeps her chin up. As she looked upon her home, she saw past the unpleasant and darkness that loomed around it and saw all the possibilities and sacrifices. It was her home damn it.

With that, Haruno Sakura took out her key and walked inside her well earned haven.

--

-P.S: Pairing is undecided so if anyone makes a strong case, I shall consider.


	2. Who's she kidding?

**Chapter 2: Who is she kidding?**

'_Easier said than done',_ thought Sakura as she prepared to go to sleep. She knew that only a few people knew her pain, only a cherished few saw her anguish and depression, and unfortunately, it was only those very few that had a direct association with that darkened horrid part of her past. Ridding herself of her gloomy thoughts, she forced herself into a fitful sleep.

The constant beep of her alarm was only one of the most annoying wake-up methods she possessed; the other one was scheduled to show up in one, two, three…

"SAKURA-CHAN!!!! Wake Up!!!" hollered Naruto.

"Good morning to you too, Naruto-kun," Sakura said as she opened the door to her best friend, "let me just take a quick shower and we'll get going."

Twenty minutes later found them running around the border of their beloved village. The comfortable silence that engulfed them gave Sakura leeway to steal glances at her friend and notice that he was uncharacteristically quiet, a phenomenon that was usually followed by chaos and upheaval.

"O.K Naruto spit it out"

"What do you mean?" he asked innocently.

Suddenly, using her massive strength to her advantage, she took him by the collar and had him hanging in front of her as she glared at him.

Nervously squirming, he answered, "I just…uhm,,,well you see," then she shook him one more time and his tint became a bluish purple, "Sakura.. urghh,…you're..chocking, me" she then loosed up her grip.

"Ahhh, o.k I just wanted to ask you if you wanted to go to the Spring Festival with me?" he timidly asked as Sakura's world came crashing down.

How could she tell her best friend, the boy who had a crush on her since they were 11 years old, that she only saw him as a brotherly figure and felt sick in the stomach by just imagining them together in an intimate relationship?

As she pondered for her answer she felt, rather than saw somebody brush next to her, and desperately, she grasp upon whatever part of said person she could grab and held on tight.

"I can't because, well.. you see..I have to take," and as she turned around to see her unsuspecting victim and felt her whole world come apart once again as her eyes met another set of green ones, but she was already hanging on thin thread, what better way to go than to be fully hanged?

"Gaara-san with me, as part of our political hospitality requirements," she finished.

Naruto was completely blown away by this revelation and had no time to feel sorry for himself as he continued to picture Gaara in formal attire accompanied by the rosette kunoichi, nothing could stop his roaring laughter at this mental image, and Sakura, as well as the victim, _ahem_, Kasekage, took several steps back.

"Wait! You're telling me..hahaha!!! that you're ha!ha!..going ha!ha!"

Angrily, she took a menacing step forward and was preparing to beat the crap out of the idiot as she quickly glanced at he unfortunate victim and noticed his confused state, not that it was easy to see, but Sakura had spend the last five years in his company, and was thus one of the few people that could actually distinguish his monotone facial expressions.

"Ano, you remember don't you, Gaara-san," she asked with a pleading look in her eyes that asked him to play along.

His only response was a slight nod as he rudely walked away and Naruto continued to laugh. The mortified Sakura said her farewells to her troublesome companion as she ran to catch up to her "future festival date".

She found him several minutes later sitting on a tree that overlooked the lake, the very same lake that had the hated bridge. She then easily climbed up the tree and sat fairly close to his intimidating person.

"Why?" he asked.

Sakura wanted to pretend that the question pertained as to why the lake looked blue-green and the sky itself was cloudless, questions that she could easily answered, but she valued her life, so she answered truthfully.

"Because I could not make myself tell him that I do not see him that way"

"So you're using me?" he asked with scorn and disgust laced in his harsh tone.

"I ah, well, to tell you the truth, have no intentions of forcing you to it," she answered.

Again, his only response was a slight nod as she suddenly disappeared without a trace or the traditional trail of smoke that belonged to the formation of such jutsu, but not before commenting,

"I find it hard to believe that someone whom he cherishes as one of his precious ones would deceive him so."

Sakura was deeply trouble by that statement, and she continued to be as she lunched with the rest of Team Kakashi at Sai's place, the only place acceptable enough to cook a decent meal besides her own.

"Why so quiet Hag? Looked at yourself in the mirror recently?" asked the ever gracious host with a cheerful smile on his face.

Surprisingly, the infamous temperamental kunoichi merely looked at him and turned her eyes back to her food; something which had the Copy Nin raising his eye brows and Naruto instantly complaining that if it was him, he'd be on the other side of the village by now.

"Nah, I'm just tired, shishou had me reading the mission reports all morning," she lied.

"It's not because she's forcing you to go with Gaara, is it? Sakura-chan, because you don't have to do it if you don't want to, I'll go tell her," volunteered Naruto.

Kakashi and Sai could only raise their speculative faces towards Naruto, as he explained Sakura's unfortunate situation.

"I've never heard of such policy," replied Kakashi as Naruto finished.

Sakura could only maintain face because of her extensive training as the Hokage's prime apprentice. She found herself regretting having to lie to her team, but she was not about to tell Naruto the truth. So she put in her foot even deeper.

"Yeah well, since I can't go with Naruto, I'm making it my personal mission to find him a date," she sidetracked.

"Really, is dickless that desperate that he needs a hag to find him another even uglier one?" asked Sai, earning several bone chilling glares.

"And who is it going to be?" Naruto asked.

"It's gonna be a surprise baka!" answered Sakura and proceeded to plummer him to the ground to stop his relentless whining.

For that little while, as Sakura beat the crap out of Naruto, Sai enjoyed the show, since this time he wasn't an active participant this time, and Kakashi pretended to ignore the commotion as he pulled out his beloved icha icha novel, all was well in the world.


	3. Surprise!

**Chapter 3: Surprise!**

'_I'm making it my personal mission to find him a date! What the hell was I thinking?_' ranted the exhausted kunoichi as she walked along the streets of her beloved village.

So far, she'd asked about 25 of her most desperate patients, 15 from her staff, and 33 innocent bystanders! She didn't understand! Wasn't money supposed to buy love? Why couldn't she find a date for Naruto.

Thankfully, most of the refusal had been because of Naruto's annoying personality, not his inmate, for that she was glad.

'_It's gonna be a surprise, alright', she thought to herself, then, the light bulb went on, "ah ha! Why didn't I think about her from the beginning_,' she asked herself as she rushed towards the hospital.

-----xXx-----

Time: 5:47 minutes later

Location: Konoha Hospital

Level: Children's Ward

"Hinata-chan!!!" shouted the excited kunoichi.

The unfortunate Hyuuga Hinata was giving a terminally ill girl a lollipop as she heard Sakura bellow her name in the middle of the hospital.

"Yes," she responded.

"Hinata, did I tell you how lucky we are that you help us out so much. I don't know what we'd do without you, the children love you so much, etc etc," and after fifteen minutes of straight buttering, Hinata said:

"Sakura," quietly.

"The survey that we passed last week…"

"Sakura," a little bit more loud.

"you were the favorite, surpassing even me! Now isn't that a wond…"

"SAKURA!" the exasperated Hinata shouted. Now, many things had taken place in Konoha, a Fox Demon had attacked it, their most powerful (_handsome_!) Hokage sacrificed himself, the Uchihas had been almost completely terminated, and Naruto happened. Never, however, in all her existence, had Hyuuga Hinata raised her voice, so when she did, _total shock_ was an understatement.

"Please, Sakura-chan, tell me what it is you want," said the harassed kunoichi.

"Yare, yare, you didn't have to scare the entire hospital, you know," said Sakura, "I was just wondering if you could do me a favor."

----------XxX----------

The morning was as could be, the lazy puffy clouds that adorned the shining sky sang with joy. The breeze added a more harmonizing effect by tickling the leaves that made a bell sound as they moved. The birds, enchanted by their lovely homes, flew around their trees in a ritualistic and beautiful dance…

"Damn it Sai! What have I told you about that stupid Ninjutsu!!" shouted Sakura.

"You can use that monstrous strength of yours, but you won't let me have my fun" said a smiling Sai.

"What are you calling monstrous you idiot? And what part of_ LIGHT_ training did you not understand!"

Sakura, completely aggravated, sat down before she felt more tempted to show her companion what monstrous really meant.

"That's it, I'm done," she said, more calmly now.

Taking her pre-packed bento out, she held out another one for Sai, who quietly sat down lotus style and began to eat it in front of her.

Once down, they both sat down and did a little cloud watching, in memory of Shikamaru, who was currently leading a mission and thus unable to do it himself. Sakura was sure to tell him later on, though, if only to irritate him.

"Sai,"

"Hn," was the only indication that told her he was indeed listening.

"Do you still think that I'm weak?"

"Now, Hag, you being ugly does not interfere with the fact that you've become an annoyingly capable kunoichi, second only to Tsunade-baachan, and if you are wallowing in self pity take up baking, I know several people who deserve to die through poisoning,"

After punching him for the Hag comment, she gave him a tentative smile, which surprisingly enough, he responded back with a real one as well.

"Thanks, I think I needed to hear that, I'm just so confused right now," she confided.

The two sat in comfortable silence, Sakura deeply involved in her inner turmoil, and Sai, well, God knows what goes through his mind. The two performed this ritual every Friday, especially if Kakashi and Naruto were not around. Out of the four of them, and Yamato, occasionally, Sai and Sakura were the ones that spend more time together, mostly since Kakashi was always busy doing Anbu level missions alone and Naruto was already receiving secret Hokage lessons from Tsunade, along with his missions. Although she and Naruto were the closest, Sai was her confidant, her rock, in contrast with Naruto's hyperactive loving personality.

"Do you think that lying to a best friend, even if to protect their feelings, is wrong?" she asked him.

"I think that Naruto will still love you, no matter what, be it as friends or whatever else he sees in your ugly face," was Sai's tranquil response, shattering Sakura's anonymous objective, "you're not a seer, not matter how much like a witch you look, so don't try to foretell people's emotions."

The irate cherry blossom merely, though not so softly, punched him. Then the two quietly got up and went about their days, Sai home to his painting and Sakura in the hospital, to do her night shift.

_How she hated night shift_! and mostly for the wrong reasons. All sane personnel gave sighs of relief when they found themselves on night, because night meant fewer patients, but Sakura was not like most, she hated the slow pace.

She was sitting on her shiny desk making origami leaping frogs when she did get a call, without hearing the details she rushed to her designated observation room, only to find a brooding red head sitting on the patient's bed. Giving him a double look, she though he must've brought some one else in, not be a patient himself, finding no one else, she gathered her courage and walked right in.

"Konbanwa, Gaara-san, how can I help you?" she asked ever so politely and with a smile.

It had been almost a week since she last saw him, and his words were still bothering him, thus, she was unsure on how to approach him now. Before she was always friendly but never weary, yet now she found herself hesitating. Chastising herself for such unprofessional feelings, and nobody could ever accuse Haruno Sakura of ever being unprofessional, she shook herself up_ mentally_, and went on as she did with every patient, with dedication.


End file.
